full title
The Sun Also Rises
author
Ernest Hemingway
type of work
Novel
genre
Modernist novel; travelogue; novel of disillusionment
language
English
time and place written
Mid-1920s, Paris
date of first publication
1926
publisher
Charles Scribner’s Sons
narrator
Jake Barnes
point of view
Jake tells the entire story from his own point of view.
tone
Somber, detached, ironic, nostalgic
tense
Past
setting (time)
1924
setting (place)
The novel begins in Paris, France, moves to Pamplona,
Spain, and concludes in Madrid, Spain.
protagonist
Jake
major conflict
Jake is in love with Lady Brett Ashley, but they cannot
maintain a relationship because he was rendered impotent by a war
wound. Jake loses numerous friendships and has his life repeatedly disrupted
because of his loyalty to Brett, who has a destructive series of
love affairs with other men.
rising action
Jake, Brett, and their friends pursue a dissipated
life in Paris; Jake introduces Brett to Robert Cohn; Brett and Cohn
have an affair; Cohn follows Brett to Pamplona.
climax
The jilted Cohn beats up Mike and Jake, and afterward Pedro Romero.
falling action
Jake and his friends leave Spain; Jake enjoys the solitude
of San Sebastian; Brett wires Jake to rescue her in Madrid after
forcing Romero to leave her.
themes
The aimlessness of the Lost Generation; male insecurity;
the destructiveness of sex
motifs
The failure of communication; excessive drinking; false friendships
symbols
Bullfighting
foreshadowing
The behavior of the bulls repeatedly foreshadows the
actions of the people in the novel.
